hack SOLEMNITY
by Deus Magi
Summary: A young gamer finally has the money to purchase a copy of "The World". However, when the game is installed, the computer is infected by an unknown virus. Could this cause bigger problems than a system error?
1. Registration

Author's Note: *sigh* Since I can't get my HTML to work. 'Blah' = thoughts, *Blah* = emphasis. At any rate, I really wanted to work on this and at least finish chapter one before I went back to Anthem's Report. For those of you who are mad at me for that.don't hurt me. And for the .hack enthusiasts, I hope you enjoy my fic. I've only played the game, seen the OVA and the anime, but SOLEMNITY isn't based solely on either of them. Do expect some appearances from random characters, though.  
  
Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I do not own .hack or any of its installments.  
  
?+a^$)r_!%e  
  
User Registration Process..  
  
I sighed as I plucked out the last characters of my user name and character name. I wasn't sure how well this would turn out. But finally, I had gotten my hands on a copy of "The World". Wouldn't you know it? My computer just happened to have contracted a virus. Just as I was preparing to install, my firewall collapsed and I was given a breach alert. If that wasn't bad enough, it was the only computer in the house, so I would have to wait for it to fix itself.  
  
It's a shame I hadn't figured that out at the time.  
  
I was too anxious. I couldn't wait to play the highly acclaimed "The World". There was no way I would just pass this up. After spending over 40,000 yen on the goggles alone, I wasn't going to wait.  
  
"User registration is complete. To start the game, select 'The World' from your desktop. Please enjoy 'The World'."  
  
'It worked?' I thought, as my desktop icons swiveled to their regular positions. That had been the biggest shock. Frankly, I'd expected the terminal to crash and burn. Was this a joke played by the CC Corp.? Did it happen to everyone? Somehow I doubted that.  
  
For a minute or two I simply sat and stared at the monitor. The new goggles sat invitingly atop the case. Fingers tingling, I reached out, picked them up and slipped them over my head. The mouse seemed to move of its own accord as I went to open the shortcut entitled "The World". The moment I heard the computer churn the controller was in my hands. Before the game even loaded up, my palms were damp with perspiration.  
  
I flipped the goggles on. The login screen appeared flawlessly before my eyes. I smiled and, ignoring the bright, flashing "new" next to the Board option, I quickly, earnestly logged on to "The World".  
  
I found myself in the Root Town, Mac Anu of the Delta server. Seemed natural enough, considering that's where all newbies end up. Unable to contain myself, I took off to explore the place, shop, and make some new friends. I had barely gotten across the bridge when my Long Arm Bronze Spear suddenly fizzled - like the TV screen when it's receiving a bad frequency. Then the scenery fizzled, then *I* fizzled. I closed my eyes. I hoped to God it wasn't the Deadly Flash. Of all people, of course, even a four-year-old virus would come to me even in its scarcity nowadays. Something kept me from dropping the controller. I had no way of disconnecting myself from the terminal. What was going on?  
  
I finally gathered the guts to at least squint. The fizzling had stopped, but I was no longer in Mac Anu. I was in some strange field. It didn't look anything like the pictures of all the other fields, so I figured this might be an event field. Or not. I looked all around, having no map. I tried gating out, but nothing I did seemed to work. All I could manage was walking. So I walked. And walked. And kept on walking. This place. . .There was nothing here.  
  
Disparagingly, I took a tighter grip around my Bronze Spear. The field lacked hills, buildings - I couldn't even find a dungeon. There weren't any ability-enhancing symbols; there weren't any monsters. Just terrain - and flying letters. . .  
  
"What the hell?" This was getting way too scary. I'd heard rumors of infected fields, and the only possibility was that I had stumbled upon one. By the time I began to rationalize my situation, I finally figured the virus had something to do with it. But it couldn't have been the Deadly Flash. After all, I was still alive.  
  
I was alive, right?  
  
Suddenly, a blast of wind rustled my flipped, light purple hair. It refreshed me a little but left me depressed when it stopped. That was rather astonishing. I didn't think even a game of this caliber would have such realistic effects. Imagine that. Even in an infected field, there was wind. Something about that made me worry.  
  
I spent a few minutes attempting to gate out, to no avail. I eased myself to my heels, leaning against the Bronze Spear. For a while I gave up trying to leave the field and just looked at my stats. My astoundingly *high* stats. From the looks of things, I wasn't a level one newbie Long Arm. In fact, I had no finite level at all. My Bronze Spear was, in fact, a Bloody Lance, which had also been upgraded. My eyes widened. Every single number had been replaced with a strange character. All my equipment had been exchanged with a higher-leveled piece, some of which I hadn't even heard of before. I had more money than possibly anyone in "The World" could even acquire. What the hell was going on here?  
  
Desperately I issued the gate out command over and over again. I was so confused I almost had a heart attack when it worked. I was back on the bridge at Mac Anu. Nothing had changed from what I recalled. Well, almost nothing. At the moment, I was being given curious glances. That seemed logical, since "The World" provided fluid movement. I wouldn't just be sitting like that in an instant. I returned the glances with a pitiful look of my own.  
  
Dazedly I stood. I balanced the strange lance in my hands. It didn't look natural. Not to me, at least. It was, to say the least, shimmering. Shimmering? That wouldn't be the right word. . .It didn't matter at the moment. Before thinking, I charged for the Chaos Gate.  
  
This game was frighteningly realistic. I found myself panting for breath when I finally reached the spinning portal. Swallowing a vast quantity of air, I prayed I would somehow manage to escape this. I closed my eyes and logged out. 


	2. Investigation

Author's Note: Just finished reading the first eight episodes of the manga. I think it was the manga, at least. Erm. . .Well, it's the manga-gone- anime. How 'bout that? Anyway, there's nothing about .hack//LotTB (Legend of the Twilight Bracelet) that I can include, since it takes place after both the anime(s) and the game. T.T  
  
Thanks to everyone who reviewed this. I deeply appreciate it. ^.^ Another short chapter on the way. Sorry I'm not too creative with all this - I just have a hard time making things long. (Oh gods. . .the innuendo bunny is having a picnic!)  
  
Disclaimer: Despite the fact I toss the whole thing around like a rag doll, butchering and mangling the very concept of it all, .hack does not belong to me. Neither does that cool scrambling thing that happens to Aura's e- mails. *sob*  
  
?+a^$)r_/w  
  
Delving to the Deep. . .  
  
I trudged up the stairs to my room with lunch - a sandwich and soda. I wasn't too hungry at the moment, and I wouldn't have time to eat it anyway if I were heading back. Back to "The World".  
  
I read the news while I nibbled at my sandwich. The articles had piled up, so there was plenty there. What piqued my interest (aside from the bit about cultivating healthier apples) was the coma incident in Kanazawa. Miraculously it wasn't too far from here, being it was in the same prefecture. The name, Tomonari Kasumi seemed vaguely familiar. All I could really tie with it was "Sieg", though. I wasn't even sure of that.  
  
After reading the rest of the news (I took pity upon myself at notice of the new Neuro Goggles that had gone on sale. I wish I had more patience. . .), I inadvertently fiddled with my desktop wallpaper. A while passed and I realized I just didn't want to go back. I shook myself. This was important. I *had* to go back. Besides, I had already finished lunch.  
  
I took a deep breath, put the goggles over my head, moused over the icon, double-clicked. I exchanged the mouse for the controller, slipped the goggles down. I read the BBS, finding nothing particularly interesting, all except for a thread titled "Coma". But when I went to read it, the message had been deleted. There were also a lot of posts about the server crashing, which I missed. I skimmed over a lot of it. When it had all been read, I exited the BBS and logged in, hoping I wouldn't get stuck again.  
  
Here I was again in Mac Anu. It was still the same, much to my relief. This time I didn't get too excited. I calmly made my way to the bridge, to see if the same incident would happen twice. I stopped right in the location I had been before I was transported to that empty field.  
  
Nothing happened.  
  
I tried remembering what I'd done. All I really *had* done was run, and I tried that plenty of times. Still, I remained in Mac Anu.  
  
Several "tries" later, I disparagingly sat on the rail of the bridge. I contemplated for some time about the field, my sudden warp there. I balanced my Bloody Lance over my feet, not really paying much attention to the surrounding town. Not until someone shouted at me from below.  
  
"Coming through!" said a husky voice. I withdrew my knees, grabbing hold of the lance before it could fall. Yet, it fell.  
  
"Hey, sorry!" I shouted. "Could you toss it back up?"  
  
A man with a weird helmet leered up at me with glowing red eyes. In the same boat, a gentle-looking Heavy Axewoman made her way forward. The knight lifted the lance that he had deftly caught and, just as exquisitely, tossed it back up. The lance almost flew to my hands. I had never been much good at catching anything.  
  
I smiled and waved, but neither of them seemed to notice. The minute they were under the bridge, they began talking.  
  
"Lady Subaru, did you see that lance?" the man said. "It didn't look like any Long Arm weapon I'd seen before."  
  
"The inventory said it was a Bloody Lance," said a clear, soft voice, obviously the woman's. "But it didn't look like one. It couldn't have been - the description said it was level 99."  
  
I looked over my shoulder as they came out the other side. Who were those people? I had heard of a Lady Subaru before. I mulled the name over for quite some time. 'Lady Subaru - of the Crimson Knights,' I thought. Those were the self-appointed peacekeepers inside "The World". I gasped, turning fully around to watch the boat sail off. I noticed that, before they rounded a corner, the two had been staring back at me. At least before I decided to look at them. They were glowing. And they didn't really go around the corner; it was more like they. . .disappeared.  
  
I grimaced. What would happen if they investigated my character? I doubt they'd believe my story. I still had a hard time with it myself. I regarded the lance in my hands pitifully. If I didn't fix this, the Crimson Knights would surely do something to my character. I eased myself to the planks of the bridge and stood upright. There was something I could try.  
  
I took off calmly to the weapon shop. I purchased a lance and some armor, graciously thanking whoever decided to put the lowest level equipment right where I could get my hands on it. However, when I went to equip it, the screen fizzled. It was only for a moment, but it shocked me out of my wits. I kept equipping the armor, the lance. . .but the visor kept fizzling. Moaning distressingly, I sold it all back to the weapon shop. I moped back across the bridge, all the way to the recorder. I didn't know why I was saving, but I did anyway.  
  
On my way to the Chaos Gate, some jerk called BlackRose almost plowed me over when she ran down the stairs. Glaring over my shoulder at her, I ended up knocked shoulders with a kid called Kite. He looked rather dejected, to say the least. I said a quick "sorry" before continuing on my way. I felt something strange about that kid. But judging by his weapons, the Twin Blade's Amateur Blades, he was just a newbie. I couldn't help contemplating on that odd surge long after I had logged out of "The World".  
  
What was that all about, anyway? 


	3. Consternation

Author's Note: I'm back! I just had to write another chapter, despite the fact that every electronic device in my house hates me. Personally I don't trust the one I'm using right now. But we're getting along. . .after a certain inconvenient little mishap earlier. About HTML, I figured out my problem, but I don't have Microsoft Office re-installed yet. Worry not, I'll have my stories chock full of HTML as soon as I do.  
  
F.Y.I., I'm not feeling too good right now, which is why the narrator is the way they are this time around. ^_^;  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own .hack or any of its installments.  
  
?+a^$)r_T~r7&  
  
My stomach groaned irritably at my sudden movement. I held my breath for a moment to keep breakfast down. It was Wednesday morning and I was sick. Of course I wasn't faking it, but I almost wish I was. There's nothing worse than getting to stay home from school only to spend the day throwing up. I clapped a hand over my mouth and made a quick sprint to the bathroom.  
  
I dragged my feet back to my bedroom. I was so sick I didn't even want to play "The World". But I knew that deep down inside I did. The game was like chocolate: sweet and addictive, but dangerous if over-consumed. I didn't care, though. I spent a few hours watching cartoons until I fell asleep. The only thing I dreamt about was that empty field and everything I remember about being there.  
  
The sound of incoming e-mail awoke me. 'Damn!' I thought. 'Why'd I have to leave the volume so high?' Detangling myself from the blanket of my futon, I crawled over to the desk where my old computer sat. I pulled myself up into the squeaky old chair and pressed a button on my keyboard to receive the message. Spam. Go figure. I sighed. I never seemed to get any important e-mail anymore, not since the last upgrade of Fragment was released. By then everyone was playing "The World", even in its beta stages. I closed my eyes and leaned my head against the monitor.  
  
Another round of the sound effect caused me to jump and almost retch all over the screen. I growled and smacked the same button as before, expecting another unsolicited advertisement on toothpaste.  
  
What popped up instead made me lose all thoughts of an upset stomach. I read the message over twice, trying to make sure I wasn't still dreaming.  
  
"Keep your eyes open. The situation is abnormal and dangerous. Keep your eyes open."  
  
The sender was anonymous. What did the message mean? Who had sent it?  
  
Why did they send it. . .?  
  
My guts wrenched uncomfortably. I set my hand down on the desk and leaned over the keyboard. I blinked and looked at my hand; it had set on the VR goggles that I usually placed on top of the monitor. I frowned. The e-mail must have had something to do with whatever was inside "The World".  
  
I sat up, ignoring my stomach. I double-clicked the icon in the top-right corner of the screen and put the goggles on. The controller, unlike the goggles, were in the place they should be: in the little holster that hung off the side of my desk (it had been packaged with the controller as an on- sale bonus, since I was forced to buy the cheap one). The main menu of the game opened up, telling me there were new messages on the BBS. I read them but didn't pay much attention. My mind was too focused on the e-mail and the small clue I was given in receiving it.  
  
"Keep your eyes open," I repeated aloud as I waited for the game to log me in. "For what, I wonder?"  
  
I arrived in Mac Anu to see a heavy axeman in green armor standing by the Chaos Gate. I edged around to avoid any unwanted conversation with him. He looked like he was waiting for someone. I wasn't about to keep him from his appointment; besides, his smile creeped me out.  
  
I went to the item shop to stock up on all the essentials, sighing inwardly when I noticed my GP didn't go down. Walking back up the stairs, I passed a group of people talking about an event character mentioned on the BBS. Apparently she looked like a ghost and, whenever sighted, was playing tag with a creature with a red wand. I didn't say anything, but instead kept my thoughts to myself.  
  
I'd heard about the ghost girl from stories told in the earlier days of "The World", shortly after beta testing. But back then no one had actually *seen* her. So after so many years, the glitches were returning. Or were they glitches? There was no sense in worrying about it until I saw for myself just what kind of problem this might establish.  
  
When I got back to the Chaos Gate, the heavy axeman was still there. His smile had diminished, but at sight of me he charged and grabbed my hand.  
  
"Ah, fair lady!" he cried in possibly the most annoying voice I'd ever heard, "would you kindly join me on an adventure in exchange for my servitude?"  
  
I blinked several times. He must not have realized he was holding my hand very tight - so tight I had wrench myself free from his grip. If people in "The World" had blood, my hand would have been a bright red, though invisible through the glove I wore.  
  
"Well," I said, trying to sound as irritated as I was. "Don't you. . .don't you think you should introduce yourself, first?"  
  
He looked confused for a moment, then smiled and nodded (to best of his ability, due to his bulky armor). "Of course! You are absolutely right. My name is Piros, fair lady."  
  
"Nice to meet you," I said quietly, returning the smile half-heartedly. Without telling him my own name, I pushed past him and stopped at the rim of the Chaos Gate. Piros turned and gaped at me, looking helpless.  
  
"But. . ." Before Piros had a chance to say anything else I had logged off. This rumor about the ghost girl deserved my attention.  
  
The thread about the ghost girl was very active when I arrived. Many of the posts including keyword combinations to fields where she had been seen. The first one mentioned was Delta: Expansive, Haunted, Sea of Sand. I planned on going there as soon as I forgot about the sickening feeling that had finally returned to my stomach. 


	4. Captivation

Author's note: I remember being anxious to get back to this. Well most people haven't noticed I wrote a chapter three, so if you went straight to this one from two then please make a U-turn. It took me a long time to finish this chapter. I ended up having to look through the player's guide to find a situation to write about. Mia and Elk seemed fun.  
  
Okay, it may seem like this story doesn't have a plot. . .but I promise I'll get to it. You know. . .virus thing has to be settled.  
  
Disclaimer: .hack is Bandai's. They're mean to Balmung. o_o Either way, .hack isn't mine.  
  
'Thoughts', *Emphasis*  
  
?+a^$)r_=8ur  
  
Rain pounded on the sole window of my bedroom. The sky was blanketed by dark clouds, covering the midday sun. Thunder shook the entire house every half-second. I was the only one to know just how annoying that was. My parents always left early in the morning, and the storm had started long after their departure. I would have enjoyed the weather on a weekend, but today was Tuesday and I was supposed to be in school. It must have been the gloom omitted from the clouds that kept me inside; I just didn't feel like going to school that day. Instead I surfed the 'net for nothing in particular.  
  
I read the BBS of "The World". The past few days I had ignored it, logging in and sitting in Mac Anu. People that passed by would point me out to their friends, talking like I wasn't even there. "Do you think she's an event character?" one of them said. "She looks so weird. Like she's glowing."  
  
I sighed. There was a thread about rare weapons, the main topic being a pair of blades called the Spiral Edge. Apparently it was being guarded by a tough monster and someone needed help defeating it. Nothing I really needed to know about. There was a post by a *real* event character, challenging any takers to a game of tag.  
  
"Tag?" I said aloud, reaching for my headset. "Finally, something to entertain me."  
  
Logging in, the first thing I saw was a blaring red sunset. I squeezed my eyes shut and turned around. "Damn! I hate this server. When will they open something else?" I opened my eyes to see a Wavemaster staring at me.  
  
"Didn't you know?" he said in a most unflattering voice. "Theta was recently opened. I heard there was this weird ghost girl in some protected area, too." He scratched the back of his head. "It's interesting to know how fast people get around. . ."  
  
I frowned at him. "Thanks for the info. I guess I missed it." I activated the Chaos Gate, checking my word list. Then, curious, I looked at another option: "Other Servers". There it was. The symbol for Theta. I glanced at the Wavemaster who still stood there.  
  
"Are you waiting for someone?" I asked curiously.  
  
He glanced at me as if he had never seen me before. "Um. . .yeah. A friend of mine." For how he came off he didn't seem very talkative anymore.  
  
I didn't say anything in reply. The silence was awkward, giving me a chance to head to the place I'd read about: Delta: Detestable, Golden, Sunny Demon. As soon as I warped in, I was met by a regular looking goblin. I assumed this was the one that had written the message on the BBS - Stehoney as his signature had implied.  
  
"Let's play tag. If you win, I'll give you a reward. I really doubt that will happen, though." he said. He ran off without another word.  
  
I stared after him for a moment. "I guess I'm It, then." I took off after him, my Bloody Lance at the ready. For how good he made himself out to be, he wasn't all that quick. I caught up to him in a manner of seconds, of course using some maneuvers that involved cutting him off most of the time.  
  
When the red target closed on him, I never took the opportunity for granted. The lance cut through him once and he fell down, gray and lifeless. Out of nowhere, the same voice called out. "You did better than I thought. My bad for underestimating you." The voice turned smug, yet painful. "But don't get cocky. I'm only an apprentice of the Four Gob Kings." At the last syllable, he made a dying noise and I was granted an item called a Goblin Cap. When I looked at it, the description said it was a level six rare piece of head armor.  
  
"Feh. What good will that do me?" I shrugged, deciding to put it in storage when I got back to Root Town.  
  
Upon my re-arrival, the Wavemaster I spoke to earlier was still standing there with the same expression. I hadn't really noticed, but he looked rather sad. I frowned, realizing my excursion couldn't have taken more than three minutes. When I gated in next to him he looked at me hopefully. He must have thought I was his friend because the look turned upside down, so to speak.  
  
Looking at him made me want to cry. He was so pitiful! I couldn't help but ask if he was okay.  
  
"I'm fine," the Wavemaster said. He wasn't too reassuring. He turned away from me. He noticeably tightened his grip around the staff he held. It must have been a gift from someone; it certainly wasn't a newbie's weapon. I dropped my shoulders. I wasn't going to waste any more time trying to make conversation. I started off toward the Elf's Haven to store the armor I'd received.  
  
As I walked down the stairs, I passed by a very peculiar character. She looked like a cat with very long ears and purple fur. The most logical explanation was that she was a NPC. It was illegal to make your character look like anything but a human. I was confused to hear the Wavemaster's voice prove me wrong.  
  
"Mia! I found an area that has a lot of Aromatic Grass. Do you want to go?"  
  
"Yeah, let's go," replied Mia. Her voice was definitely passing through smiling lips.  
  
I kept walking until I heard the sound of two people gating out. I stopped near the stairs leading to the Elf's Haven, fairly close to the bridge that I now preferred not to walk over. Looking over my shoulder I gazed at the Chaos Gate curiously. There was definitely no way anyone could customize their character in the shape of a cat, unless. . .I couldn't imagine such people just walking through Root Town like everything was normal, but. . .  
  
"Was that a hacker?" 


End file.
